The judge in that case has issued his decision, and it's a mixed bag. In essence, the judge appears to be aiming for a compromise position which looks to give farmers who are growing genetically modified sugar beets the time frame of a growing season to convert to non-gm crops.

This important legal victory for an organic farmer could have broad implications.

Four years ago, the president of Jacobs Farm/Del Cabo, Larry Jacobs, received an unfortunate phone call from Whole Foods. The retail giant notified him that it was rejecting the organic dill he had sold the chain because his culinary herb had tested positive for pesticides.

As it turns out, Jacob's 120-acre herb farm, just north of Santa Cruz in Wilder Ranch State Park, was a victim of a hard-to-detect but relatively simple scientific process: Pesticides applied in liquid form to nearby Brussels sprouts later volatilized and carried as a vapor, through wind or fog, to Jacob's dill.

This week, California's 6th Appellate District Court upheld Jacob's right to sue the pesticide applicator, Western Farm Service, and let stand the $1 million award a jury handed Jacobs two years ago. The ruling becomes final in 30 days.

[...]

The decision is significant, agriculture and law experts say, because it strengthens the case for organic farmers or anyone else harmed by pesticides to seek legal recourse -- even if the pesticide is legally applied as it was here.

In Egypt, the government is making some noise about addressing their notoriously loose organic regulations.

The judge in that case has issued his decision, and it's a mixed bag. In essence, the judge appears to be aiming for a compromise position which looks to give farmers who are growing genetically modified sugar beets the time frame of a growing season to convert to non-gm crops.

Egyptians walking into high-end supermarkets are well-accustomed to finding a corner designated for the sale of organic and biodynamic products, which are free from all chemical additives and genetic modification. Still, prices for such products are often double those of regular goods. The decision to buy is often subjective, dependent on the buyer's personal perception of the manufacturer as the products do not carry any local certification guaranteeing that they are indeed organic or biodynamic.

That is about to change, as Minister of Trade and Industry Rachid Mohamed Rachid issued a decree last week regulating the sale of organic and biodynamic goods. The decision comes on the back of complaints earlier this year that products on the market were not in fact what they were being claimed to be.

"Some producers claimed on their package that their goods were organic, just so they could stick a higher price tag on the products," Consumer Protection Agency board member and Heliopolis Consumer Protection Association Vice-President Salwa Shoukry told Al-Ahram Weekly. Shoukry added that consumers could not file a complaint with the Consumer Protection Agency, nor could they complain directly to the company, because there were no specifications in the first place that these companies could be held accountable for. Last week's decree is intended to correct this situation.

The ministerial decree states that manufacturers need to be accredited by specialised auditing companies. These auditing companies, as well as the manufacturers who receive the certification, need to register with the Egyptian Organisation for Standardisation and Quality (EOSQ). Manufacturers are not allowed to label their goods as organic without going through these procedures.

Furthermore, EOSQ reserves the right to inspect manufacturers' premises. Should a certified farm not be up to standard, the auditing company that provided the farm with the certificate will be closed down. Companies have been given a three- month grace period to get their houses in order. EOSQ will also issue a directory including the names of accredited manufacturers and auditors.

The judge in that case has issued his decision, and it's a mixed bag. In essence, the judge appears to be aiming for a compromise position which looks to give farmers who are growing genetically modified sugar beets the time frame of a growing season to convert to non-gm crops.

See the full list for restaurants and descriptions, but represented locations include Westport, Conn, Saskatoon, Canada, Walland, Tenn, Camden, Maine, Bethlehem, PA, New York City, Nashville, Tenn and Chicago.